The Inside the City Blog

Giving an exclusive insight into all the key business issues of the moment, James Ashton takes you inside the city

Welcome to The Inside the City Blog, in which The Sunday Times'
award-winning business team will keep you up to date with the most important
business and finance news and analysis.

Foods giant will serve up slim
pickings

James Ashton

It wasn’t a great week for Associated British Foods, the owner of budget
clothing chain Primark. There must be better ways of getting some publicity
other than being condemned for selling padded bikinis to seven-year-old
girls.

Yet attention is exactly what ABF needs. For a company that ranks 43rd in the
FTSE 100, with a market value of £7.5 billion, precious little is written
about it.

Most investors essentially view ABF these days as Primark with a shopping
basket of goodies — and not-so-goodies — on the side, yet it has proved to
be one of the most defensive of blue chips. It was a solid performer during
the